As you may, or may not know, apps are where it’s at. There are apps to handle just about anything.

Most of us know about Facebook and Twitter apps, but how about something a little more local. I want to show you some apps that will help you get around the Wabash Valley.

Need to check out a bank account? Chances are, your bank has a way to access your money on the go.

ISU Federal Credit Union has its Go ISUFCU app; you can locate ATM’s, check your balance and check out savings accounts.

They are not the only one. Old National, Fifth Third and Regions Bank all have their own apps.

Other banks like First Financial Bank make their sites mobile friendly, so you jump on and manage your account.

How about shopping? Many stores offer apps to help find the deals you want, before you even get to the store.

The Kroger app lets you create a log-in and manage coupons, see the weekly ad, and even get your prescriptions refilling, instead of calling or waiting.

This also works for some gas stations, for example, Speedway has a handy little app. With this app, you won’t have to worry about carrying your “Speedy Rewards” card around with you; it is accessible directly in the app. You can also check out gas prices before you even leave the house.

How about local news, yes, we have you covered. News 10 has an app! You can get in there and check out video from stories we ran, the radar, the forecast, sports scores and even school closings.

Do you have a local app that I may have missed? Want to share it with everyone? Let me know in the comments!

Do you have a topic you would like me to talk about? If so, shoot me an email at Christopher.Essex@wthitv.com.

Indiana State prepares this week for an extremely good New Mexico team that comes into the Hulman Center undefeated. (assuming a win over Mercer Wednesday night) They are coached by Indiana basketball legend Steve Alford, and have lots of ingredients of a good basketball team. That being said, Indiana State has six days to prepare for the Lobos. They are coming off a tremendous second half against a High Point team that will have a good season in the Big South. Let’s break this one down.

If you like point guard play, this is the ballgame for you. Indiana State’s Jake Odum and New Mexico’s Kendal Williams. Both players were voted to the preseason All-Conference teams of their respective leagues. It’s safe to say early on, both are backing that up. The definition of stat stuffing guards, both Odum and Williams lead their teams in scoring and assists per ballgame. Both players also lead their teams in minutes played. The battle at the point should be a great one to watch.

Depth will be key in this ballgame, and the advantage here goes to the Sycamores. While ISU and New Mexico both lean heavily on their lead guard to play major minutes, the Lobos also rely on Tony Snell and Alex Kirk in a big way. Snell is an athletic forward that can step out and shoot. He leads the Lobos in three point attempts and is second on the team in scoring and minutes. Kirk scores 11 points per game and pulls down more than 8 boards per contests. He’s a load inside at 7’ 250 pounds. Neutralizing Kirk will be a challenge for the Sycamores who are a little small up front. This will be a challenge for Jake Kitchell and Justin Gant defensively. ISU is coming off a win over High Point when they held talented big men John Brown and Allan Chaney to just 16 points combined. That kind of interior defense on Kirk would go a long way towards a win over New Mexico.

Lucas Eitel is coming off of the game of his life against High Point. Eitel was 9-9 including 7-7 from the three point line for 25 points. While you obviously can’t count on Eitel to score 25 every night, you can count on other teams noticing his absurd 74% from behind the arc in the scouting report. Eitel is such a smart player, and never forces shots. If defenses aren’t letting him breath on the perimeter, that’s bound to open up the lane for Odum penetration and post work inside. Mostly unnoticed in the win over High Point was the 18 points scored by freshman Khristian Smith. Smith came in with high expectations and has shown flashes of brilliance in his short stint at ISU. This could have been a coming out party for Smith. His athleticism should play well in the New Mexico game. He seems like the man that could be charged with the defensive assignment on Snell.

If this one’s close, free throws could come into play. The Lobos get to the line a lot and they make them. Their go to players Williams and Snell both shoot better than 92% from the line. As a team the Lobos shoot better than 80%. The Sycamores have struggled from the stripe shooting just 66% on the year. That number seems to be more of a fluke. R.J. Mahurin, one of the best shooters on the team is only 14-24 from the line. That reflects more of a slump than the norm.

The bottom line in this game could be preparation time. In a world of college sports where everyone always preaches about worrying about the next game, the Lobos have to play a home game against Mercer on Wednesday night. In no way shape or form should Mercer even give the Lobos a game, but they’ve been prepping for them all week. That leaves a Thursday practice and a cross-country flight between a 2 o’ clock date with the Sycamores on Saturday. On the other hand, ISU is coming off a tremendous second half of basketball against High Point, and this week is wide open for the Sycamores. That extra time to watch tape, practice against New Mexico schemes, and recover from bumps and bruises should certainly play into the Sycamore’s advantage.

I look for the coaching staff to have a great game plan together on Saturday. ISU welcomes one of the best teams in the country to the Hulman Center. A win would not only turn heads around the Wabash Valley, but would send waves through the conference. This is a young basketball team coming off of two great wins. They seem to be growing up quickly. Saturday, in front of a huge home crowd, we’ll see just how quickly. The Lobos will be the toughest test to date, but the Sycamores will be ready to go.

Today: Sunshine will return, but we’ll stay about 10° below average with highs near 40°.

Tonight: Mostly clear skies stick around for tonight, and once again, getting cold as we drop back near 23°.

Tomorrow &  Extended Outlook: High pressure remains in control through tomorrow and into Thursday. This will bring mostly sunny skies and a warming trend. Highs will get into the mid 40s Wednesday, and up near 50° by Thursday. We’ll get back above average for the end of the week with highs nearing 63° by Sunday!

We’ll see temperatures climbing into the mid 40s for highs this afternoon, but we should be closer to 49° for the average. Clouds will continue to build in during the day. There is a chance for flurries across southern portions of the Valley tonight, however, don’t expect it to be widespread or accumulating snow though.

Clouds will stick around through the overnight as temperatures drop back near 24°. Look for partly cloudy skies and colder air moving in for Tuesday with highs near 39°.

High pressure will build in by Wednesday, which will give us mostly sunny skies both Wednesday and Thursday with highs in the mid to upper 40s. A storm system will approach the Wabash Valley by the end of the week bringing a slight chance for showers Friday through Sunday, but temperatures will be warmer, get back into the upper 50s and lower 60s.

The annual Leonid Meteor Shower is tonight.  Moonlight will not obscure the view, so find a dark sky and look up.  After midnight is best, but you’ll probably be able to see some before that.  Remember to dress warmly.  Don’t use a telescope or binoculars, just look up and scan the sky.  Happy viewing!

Clear skies will be around tonight as temperatures drop into the lower 20s! Daytime highs will only reach the mid 40s Tuesday afternoon with overnight lows again dropping into the mid 20s Tuesday night. Mostly sunny skies will be around through Tuesday with only a few clouds expected Wednesday and Thursday. Even with ample sunshine this week, temperatures will stay below average all week and through the upcoming weekend.

Colder than average all week!

We’re seeing rain showers changing over into a wintry mix this morning. We’ve had several reports of ice, sleet and snow from our viewers across the Wabash Valley. Thank you, Brian Moyer, for sending in the photo of the wintry precipitation that fell near the Coalmont area. You can see some of this is sticking to cars, metal objects and quite possible grassy areas. The ground (pavement) is a little too warm for accumulations and this event is about over anyway.

The good news is the rain showers/wintry mix will come to an end by midday today and the sky will start to clear. Temperatures will stay steady in the upper 30s. We hit our high temp for the day at midnight and it will only continue to fall.

We are in the middle of what I would term a true Indian Summer.  The term, Indian Summer, dates back to at least the 1700s and is used to describe a period of unusually warm weather that occurs after a period of cold, frosty conditions.  An Indian Summer can occur more than once in a season.  The origin of the term is unclear.  Some speculate that Native Americans took advantage of settlers during this warm spell to launch attacks before the real winter weather set in.  Others say it was a time for the Natives to further their hunting for the winter season.  The truth is, nobody quite knows where or how the term began.

No matter what the origin of the term, Indian Summer, the weather we’ve had today and will experience tomorrow fits the technical definition. 

Oh, and I must include that Indian Summers are typically short-lived.  This particular one is set to end by Monday.

Today is the annniversary of the Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald.  Here is Gordon Lightfoot’s beautiful tribute…always brings a tear to my eye.  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hgI8bta-7aw  Here is the official website dedicated to the ship and its crew.  http://www.ssefo.com/

Today and Tonight: The sky will start off mostly clear with clouds moving in from the west. A warm southerly breeze will usher in warmer air, so expect highs in the mid 60s. Cloud cover and the wind from the south will keep temperatures mild during the overnight as we drop back into the mid 40s.

Saturday and Sunday: Well above average temperatures will be in place for Saturday with highs near 71° with partly cloudy skies. Warm temps will stick around for Veteran’s Day with highs in the upper 60s under partly cloudy skies.

Extended Outlook: Enjoy the warm temperatures while they last. A cold front will push through the Wabash Valley late Sunday into Monday bringing scattered rain showers and much cooler air.